Break away belt fastener



BREAK AWAY BELT FASTENER Filed Oct. 22, 1964 INVENTOR.

LYNWOOD V. SMITH ATTORNEYS United States Patent Ofifice 3,295,178- Patented Jan. 3-, 1967 3,295,178 BREAK AWAY BELT FASTENER Lynwood V. Smith, Farmington, Conn., assignor to North and Judd Manufacturing Company, New Britain, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Filed Oct. 22, 1964, Ser. No. 405,790 4 Claims. (Cl. 24178) This invention generally relates to safety devices for belts and is more specifically related to the provision of improved mounting for belt hardware.

A principal object of the present invention is the provision of a belt assembly having improved hardware mounting particularly suited to securely fasten the belt under normal conditions while at the same time being rapidly and easily disassembled so that the belt may be unfastened and immediately removed, particularly for purposes of safety. Included in this object is the aim of providing a rugged belt assembly of the general type referred to as a Sam Browne belt which is capable of supporting heavy objects such as a holstered revolver while additionally providing immediate break away protection against assailants, who have been known to grab such belts in an attack from behind and virtually strap the wearer into a helpless condition by means of his own belt.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of an improved mounting device for belt hardware having notable utility in releasably attaching such hardware for attaining the stated objects and which is readily incorporated in belts of other types having requirements for an attractive mounting structure which is economical to manufacture and assemble and which will provide dependable service over extended periods of repeated and rugged use.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereafter set forth and the scope of the application which will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a belt assembly constructedin accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged isometric view of a mounting device incorporated in the assembly of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, isometric view of the device of FIG. 2 illustrated in an engaged position.

Referring to the drawing in detail, a belt assembly is illustrated in the form of a conventional Sam Browne belt including the usual shoulder strap, generally designated by the numeral 10, having remote ends 12 and 14 spaced apart for connection with generally opposed portions of a waist strap designated 16.

The waist strap 16 of the belt assembly is shown as having a suitable strap connector such as the illustrated center bar buckle 18 having a pair of tongue-engaging catches or hooks 20 and 22 spaced apart on the center bar or leg 24, the hooks 20 and 22 being selectively positioned in apertures provided in a tongue end 26 of the waist strap.

In order to releasably attach opposite ends 26 and 28 of the waist strap to provide a belt assembly possessing immediate break away protection in accordance with this invention, a mounting device or clip, generally designated by the numeral 30, is shown as being fixed by suitable fastening means such as rivet 32 to the strap end 28, clip 30 having a substantially fiat rectangular shape made from a single blank of thin resilient material such as sheet metal stamped and bent to form as more fully described hereafter.

Opposite the fixed end of clip 30 is a free end portion projecting beyond the termination of strap end 28 so as to be directed toward belt buckle 18 on the opposite tongue end 26 of the waist strap. The free end portion of clip 30 is illustrated as being split to provide longitudinally extending spring fingers, three being shown in the drawing, whereby substantially identical outer fingers 34 and 36 are spaced apart on opposite sides of the free end of clip 30, with an intermediate finger 38 extending in parallel relationship therebetween, the width of the finger 38 being preferably greater than the width of each outer finger.

As illustrated in the preferred embodiment of the V invention, an intermediate segment of each outer finger is raised or offset from the outer surface of clip 30 to provide knuckles 34a, 36a having an inverted U-shaped cross section respectively extending laterally across outer fingers 34 and 36 in alignment with one another. Adjoining the knuckles 34a and 36a on the outermost ends of fingers 34 and 36 are terminal tangs, or wings, 34b and 36b beveled outwardly from the plane of clip 30 in a direction corresponding to the direction of offset of their adjoining knuckles.

A knuckle 38a and adjoining wing 38b are similarly formed on intermediate finger 38 in an aligned, but inverted, position with respect to those on fingers 34 and 36. Knuckle 38a is U-shaped in cross section so as to be concavely curved in a direction opposite to that of the adjacent knuckles 34a, 36a, and the adjoining wing 38b is obliquely directed inwardly from the plane of clip 30 in a direction corresponding to the direction of offset of knuckle 38a to form the extreme end of intermediate finger 38.

It will be seen that knuckles 34a, 36a, and 38a on the free end of clip 30 collectively define a transverse aperture for receiving leg 24 of buckle 18 in releasable snap engagement for connecting the waist strap ends of the belt assembly. The intermediate wing 38b diverges with respect to the wings 34b and 36b of the outer fingers to thereby align and guide leg 24, which provides a camming action upon being snapped into the knuckles of the spring fingers in alternating lapping engagement as viewed in FIG. 3. So that relative movement of clip 30 along the leg of buckle 18 is minimized, the over-all width of the free end of clip 30 is dimensioned to closely fit between the hooks 20 and 22.

It will be apparent that upon engaging buckle 18 of the waist strap of the belt, the tongue end 26 is inserted underneath one side of buckle 18 and carried over the center leg 24 for engagement with the hooks 20 and 22, and out under the other side of the belt buckle. In accordance with another aspect of this invention, the outwardly flaring wings 34b and 36b of the outer fingers engage the inner surface of tongue 26 and thereby bias the adjoining knuckles 34a and 36a to press against leg 24 to further secure the buckle 18 against accidental dislodgement. Yet upon giving any portion of the waist strap 16 a healthy tug, the belt assembly can be immediately disconnected at the discretion of the wearer.

A similar mounting device or clip 30' is illustrated for securing each end 12 and 14 of the shoulder strap 10, the latter being adjustably lengthened or shortened by means of a chest buckle 40. Although the belt is shown to include a clip 30' secured on opposed portions of the waist strap 16 for gripping a leg of a D-ring 42, for example, fixed on each end of the shoulder strap, the positions of the clips 30 and the rings 42 can be reversed and, alternatively, the shoulder strap ends 12, 14 can be rigidly fixed to the waist strap 16 and the chest buckle 40 can be releasably engaged by a clip or mounting device substantially identical to that disclosed on the waist strap 16.

The belt assembly constructed in accordance with the present invention has a pleasing appearance when assembled and is held in place with suflicient strength and rigidity to afford excellent retention under normal conditions. Yet when the occasion is warranted, the belt can be immediately removed to provide break away protection freeing the wearer from any interference or constraint.

As will be apparent to persons skilled in the art, various modifications and adaptations of the structure abovedescribed will become readily apparent without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a belt assembly having an elongated strap, a break away belt fastener comprising a strap connector having a transverse bar, and a generally flat clip including a plurality of longitudinally extended fingers having free ends thereon positioned adjacent one another at one end of said clip, said fingers including a pair of outer fingers spaced apart and an intermediate finger between said outer fingers, each of said fingers having a laterally extending knuckle offset from the plane of said clip in a direction opposite to that of the adjacent knuckle for alternately lapping and gripping said bar of said strap connector in tight fitting surface-to-surface engagement, and said free end of each said finger inclined generally in the direction of its offset knuckle to form diverging free ends on said clip for guiding said bar of said strap connector into gripping engagement with said knuckles.

2. The break away lbelt fastener of claim 1 wherein said knuckles on said fingers are in alignment with one another and collectively define a transverse aperture for receiving'said bar of said strap connector in alternating lapping engagement.

3. The break away belt fastener of claim 1 wherein a free end on at least one of said fingers is engageable with a run of the strap for biasing its said transverse segment into pressing engagement with said bar of said strap connector.

4. In a belt assembly having an elongated strap, a clip for coacting with a strap connector having a transverse bar and comprising a generally flat, rectangular body including a plurality of longitudinally extending fingers having free ends thereon positioned adjacent one another at one end of said clip, each of said fingers including a laterally extending knuckle formed in alignment with the knuckles of the other fingers, each said knuckle oflFset from the plane of said clip in a direction opposite to that of the adjacent knuckle, and said free end of each said finger inclined generally in the direction of its otfset knuckle to form diverging free ends on said clip for guiding a bar of a strap connector into tight fitting gripping engagement with said knuckles.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 30,503 7/1884 Lindsay 24-10 X 466,932 1/ 1892 Cornell 24259 X 1,796,775 3/1931 Warren 2-310 X 1,995,749 3/ 1935 Rosenblum 2478 2,564,564 8/1951 Cookman 2-310 X 2,938,252 5/1960 Scheemaeker 2466 WILLIAM FELDMAN, Primary Examiner. JORDAN FMNKLIN, Examiner. G, V. LARKIN, E. SIMONSEN, Assistant Examiners. 

4. IN A BELT ASSEMBLY HAVING AN ELONGATED STRAP, A CLIP FOR COATING WITH A STRAP CONNECTOR HAVING A TRANSVERSE BAR AND COMPRISING A GENERALLY FLAT, RECTANGULAR BODY INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING FINGERS HAVING FREE ENDS THEREON POSITIONED ADJACENT ONE ANOTHER AT ONE END OF SAID CLIP, EACH OF SAID FINGERS INCLUDING A LATERALLY EXTENDING KNUCKLE FORMED IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE KNUCKLES OF THE OTHER FINGERS, EACH SAID KNUCKLE OFFSET FROM THE PLANE OF SAID CLIP IN A DIRECTION OPPOSITE TO THAT OF THE ADJACENT KNUCKLE, AND SAID FREE END OF EACH SAID FINGER INCLINED GENERALLY IN THE DIRECTION OF ITS OFFSET KNUCKLE TO FORM DIVERGING FREE ENDS ON SAID CLIP FOR GUIDING A BAR OF A STRAP CONNECTOR INTO TIGHT FITTING GRIPPING ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID KNUCKLES. 